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I refer to the article “BCA seeks to cut number of foreign workers” About 300,000 foreign workers are employed in the construction sector. “We aim to do that – to cut it down by 20 to 30 per cent… Whoever is left… will be the higher-skilled workers,” said Dr Keung. I would like to applaud Dr Keung for what I believe is the first ever major initiative to reduce foreign workers in a sector. As I understand that the bulk of the rank-and-file workers in construction are non-Singaporeans – what is arguably even more urgent is to reduce the foreign workers in the IT sector, as anecdotally Singaporean PMETs are the most affected in this sector.

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A friend who has been unemployed for more than a year, after being laid off by a multi-national company (MNC) in Singapore despite sending more than a hundred applications alerted me to a job posting for IT applications analyst that was also posted on an Indonesian jobstreet website. Such PMET jobs should only be posted in the National Jobs Bank to give Singaporeans priority. So far, there are already 53 applicants (21 foreign and 32 local).

The consistent rhetoric in the media that PMET IT jobs are the fastest growing jobs sector and that there is a severe shortage of Singaporeans to fill the jobs available do not seem to connect with the reality on the ground, that as I understand it – many unemployed Singaporean PMET IT professionals are facing. For those who have more information and experience on this issue – please share. What are your thoughts on the above?

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A recent post in a popular forum has gotten netizens riled up over the obvious difference in pay between similarly qualified locals and foreigners. According to a forum post by a foreign Indian FT, who says he currently holds a bachelor's degree in IT and has 5.5 years of working experience as a Network Consultant in India, he was offered a job paying him $8000 SGD per month in Singapore by his current MNC employer.

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Of the Singaporeans in my company, I had the lowest salary but did the most hands on job of building the software. The rest, foreigners, earn more than me. There were only 2 other foreigners earning the same pay scale as me but as they no need to pay CPF, they get the full amount plus employer contribution in cash. There are female sinkies who are YOUNGER than me but earn at least 1k more than me.

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When I entered the meeting room, my boss had a very black face. I knew I was in trouble. I sat down in the meeting room chair and then she started to scold me already. She said IT department knows that I have been surfing porn at work and that the records are all with her now. She screamed that my behaviour is disgusting and that if she had the decision she would fire me on the spot!

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The Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) yesterday reassured the public that the personal information of those applying for National Day Parade (NDP) tickets online had not been compromised, although it acknowledged that the website’s security infrastructure could be improved. Responding to media queries yesterday, Lieutenant-Colonel (LTC) Jason See, chairman in charge of ticketing, said: “We have reviewed our IT security infrastructure and would like to reassure Singaporeans that no personal information had been compromised. Nevertheless, the level of security can be further enhanced and we will do so.”

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Sad to say, after I hit my 50s, employers would tell me I was “too old” each time I applied for an administrative job. Instead, I would be offered posts in the security or cleaning industry. Is this the way to treat experienced and capable senior citizens?

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In my experience having worked in IT for fifteen years, Indian ITs have only one advantage, which is that they are cheap. I can hire an Indian IT programmer for a quarter of the cost I can hire a local person to do the same job. There the advantage ends. I have found that many Indian ITs are only “best” at being: